Actor Naseeruddin Shah has always been the ‘outspoken one’ in an industry where a majority steer clear of controversies. Shah has always spoken with ferocious righteousness about the double standards in Hindi cinema, or whether it is about the issues concerning the political zeitgeist.
In a conversation with Karwaan-E-Mohabbat, Shah expressed fear at how some radical elements had gotten a free rein under the current establishment. He bemoaned how society was slowly beginning to value the life of a cow over the life of a cop, referring to the incident in Bulandshahr. He also spoke at length about how he and Ratna Pathak Shah (a non-practising Hindu and his wife) had not brought their children to be religious.
Shah expressed fear for his children, if they were to be surrounded by a mob then what would be their answer to ‘which religion do you belong to?’ Considering they have been brought up as atheists.
The actor also sounded resolute towards the end, when he urged every right-thinking person to be angry, and not scared. We are after all in our homeland, who has the guts to drive us out of here?
